Compression therapy is generally prescribed to support an insufficient venous or lymphatic system in returning blood or lymph to the heart. Accordingly compression is generally considered to be the standard treatment for use in the treatment of oedema and other venous and lymphatic disorders e.g. of the lower limbs venous leg ulcers and other clinical conditions, such as lymphoedema. The positive effects of compression therapy on venous lymph return, as well as on the healing of chronic venous (leg) ulcers, are well documented in the medical literature.
Compression bandages and stockings are the most common compression systems used for compression therapy. Compression stockings however often do not provide the desired therapeutic compressive pressure.
Other compression systems have been proposed. A number of these can be generically described as to include a sleeve-like garment to be wrapped around a limb and a closure mechanism, e.g. a zipper, to secure the sleeve-like garment around the limb (e.g. see U.S. Pat. No. 3,538,194, U.S. Pat. No. 5,653,244, US 2002/0062096, US 2003/195449, WO 2006/048619). EP 1 974 704 discloses a compression device for providing compression on a body part characterized by a main part for substantially covering a main portion of the body part, and a tongue attachable to the main part for completing the circumference around the body part, wherein the main part at each edge is provided with fastening means attachable to the tongue, in particular wherein the main part at each edge is provided with one half of a zip fastener, and the tongue is provided with a number of halves of the zip fastener mating with the half provided on the main part.
ENCIRCLE Medical Device Linkedin Group markets two layer compression stockings including (Class 1 and 2) knee-high outer stocking worn over top of an inner (Class A) knee-high stocking, where the outer stockings having a zipper extending from the top down to about mid-calf and where it is described the zipper can be opened to release pressure and closed to increase support.